Chapter 1
The slap came so hard my teeth clicked together.
For half a second, the Christmas lights blurred into red and gold streaks. Then my heel caught the dining-room rug, and I went down with a bowl of boiling chicken soup in my hands.
The bowl shattered.
Soup poured over my left hand.
I screamed.
Nobody moved.
Then Lisa, my sister-in-law, laughed.
It was a small, ugly sound. Her husband joined her. Daniel's uncle smirked into his wine. Margaret, my mother-in-law, looked down at me as if I had finally learned my place.
"Maybe now you'll learn not to talk back," she said.
My hand felt like it was on fire. My cheek was swelling. I looked at my husband.
Daniel sat at the head of the table with his fork still in his hand.
"Say something," I whispered.
He sighed.
"Mom was teaching you how to be a better wife, Emily. Don't turn this into a scene."
That hurt worse than the slap.
I stood, pulled off my wedding ring, and placed it beside his plate.
"Then find a better wife."
Daniel's face changed.
"Emily, sit down."
"No."
I turned toward the hallway.
The front door opened before I reached it.
Robert, my father-in-law, stepped inside carrying a thick brown envelope. Snow clung to his shoulders. His eyes moved from my burned hand to my face, then to the ring beside Daniel's plate.
He did not ask what happened.
He looked at Margaret.
"Before you throw Emily out," he said quietly, "you should probably know whose name is actually on this house."
Daniel stood so fast his chair hit the wall.
"Dad, what are you talking about?"
Robert set the envelope on the table.
"I'm talking about the deed."
May you like
Margaret stopped smiling.
And for the first time that night, I realized she already knew.
